Welcome to the mycroverse; Wise Fool to present 'ReUnite' at Popejoy Hall

Christina M. Castro always lends her time and voice to ensure narratives are correct.

Castro is co-founder of Three Sisters Collective, an Indigenous women-led grassroots organization devoted to arts, education, activism and community building in O’ga Pogeh, Santa Fe.

The Taos Pueblo and Jemez Pueblo member collaborated with Santa Fe-based Wise Fool to present “ReUnite 2023: Welcome to the Mycroverse.” The circus arts organization will take the stage at Popejoy Hall at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29.

“We’ve done some work with Wise Fool in the past,” Castro says. “A year ago, they put out a call for a director to bring an Indigenous lens to the project. I put in a proposal. I figured out a way to tell the story about people and think deeper into nuclear colonialism.”

“ReUnite” touches on Indigenous issues, with the goal of contributing to the conversation about indigenous rights and rematriation. Rematriation is the process of reconnecting with Mother Earth. It is a circus experience featuring a cast of 13 talented performers from Santa Fe and Albuquerque.

The hour-long show follows a journey from harmony to extraction, with a message based on community and rematriation. It features dance, aerial acrobatics, slackline, juggling stilt walking and New Mexico’s first Chinese pole.

Wise Fool toured “ReUnite” throughout the state of New Mexico this summer, with Popejoy being the last stop.

The show premiered in May and has had additional performances since then at the Children’s Theatre Festival with Theatre SF, at the Gallup Route 66 Fest and at Sol Sunday.

Castro says the idea came, and she began to channel the story and how it was going to be told.

“I knew that we sought out Native performers and dancers,” Castro says. “We have Native and non-Native performers for this show. My daughter is in the play. She’s 10 and it comes down to the children at the end. It’s about relationship building. We have to take a look at the state of our world and find ways to challenge the norm. I’m really proud of it. The performers went with the story and really believed in it. They made me and the story shine.”